This is easily the most valuable post I’ve written this year. It’s one of the most valuable I have ever shared with you. I strongly recommend you read it in full.

How would you like an endless supply of clients?

Moreover, how would you like an endless supply of clients, whilst making your business totally immune to any downturns in the economy?

Well, now you can have all that and so much more. This is not a play on words. I’m being 100% serious.

It’s all about something I call the new proximity. And it can transform your business, if you want it to.

The way things were

Until recently, the proximity of your business to your prospective clients was measured by their geographical distance from you. As a direct result, your marketplace was limited to those with a need for your services, who were within a certain number of miles of your location.

In 2017, this is no longer the case. At least it isn’t, for the majority of people reading this.

The new proximity

Today, the proximity of your business isn’t measured by how close you are in miles from a prospective client.

Today, the proximity of your business is measured by, how closely you are aligned with their needs, mindset and values.

In other words: Geography is no longer a barrier for many business owners. In 2017, human proximity, not miles, is what determines the size of your marketplace.

For example:

Imagine you need a copywriter who really “gets” what you want to say. If you find one, but they’re based 900 or 9000 miles away, it’s no problem. You can work together just fine.

Imagine you need a graphic artist for a project and find one who’s right on your wavelength. It makes zero difference that they’re based overseas.

Imagine you need a translator. If you find one whose work you trust, you’ll hire them regardless of where they are.

Imagine you need a web designer who totally understands your unique needs. If you find one whose work you love, who can provide exactly what you need, you’ll hire her regardless of how many miles there are between you.

What counts today, is how closely a service provider is aligned to exactly what a client needs. That’s the proximity that matters. For example, in the past week alone, I’ve worked with clients in Australia, Canada, the UK and US.

These people are aligned with my work and the way I work, so we share proximity, even though were miles apart geographically.

Yes, if you’re a dentist and you physically must be in the same room as your patient, geography matters. Of course, you could still provide products and services, using the new proximity model. You could create videos for people with an irrational fear of dentists, and sell them globally. If your dental business is successful, you could sell the business model to dentists everywhere, who need to grow their dental business.

What about you?

Almost every business owner reading this can either switch 100% to the new proximity model or develop products and services for it.

However, in order for it to work for you, you need to adjust your current business model.

You see, it isn’t just a case of doing what you do now, but accepting clients who you’d have previously ruled out, due to the distance between you. If you do that, little if anything, will improve for you.

Why?

Because your marketing will still be the same and your services will still be the same. So, you won’t suddenly attract all those new, prospective clients. If you want to embrace the new proximity, you need to adjust things accordingly. This will change slightly, from industry to industry.

You will also need to make it a core part of your marketing message. Here’s an example of how I integrate it into one of my marketing messages (read this). My prospective clients are fully aware that my services are specifically designed, to be offered worldwide. As a result, I work with far more clients overseas, than in my own country. I’m proud to say this includes every state in the United States.

The wonderful opportunity in front of you

With hundreds of thousands, maybe millions of new prospective clients, those who fully embrace the new proximity, have almost limitless growth potential. Also, they no longer need to worry about the impact of the economy on their business.

When the UK decided to leave the EU, many UK based marketing providers recorded a drop in business, as the domestic marketplace cut back on spending. My business thrived, because the drop in the value of the UK Pound, suddenly made my service massively more affordable to overseas clients.

You may have also noticed an additional huge benefit of this approach to business: Freedom to live anywhere you want!

My wife and I relocated from London, to a small village in the north of England. Our son was born and raised here, he attended the tiny village school and we love our community. But we could equally have relocated to the mountains, the beach… anywhere.

Yes, it takes intelligent planning if you want to benefit from the new proximity. You need to do the right things, correctly. It may also require you to shift your mindset, if you’re too used to the old proximity.

Here’s a quick idea, to help you attract the attention of prospective clients AND motivate them to hire you and recommend you. It’s all about one word. Frequency.

Allow me to explain.

I was prompted to write this after 2 emails I received.

The first was from a long time reader (Sophie). Sophie got in touch with me this morning, to find out why I hadn’t published anything since Wednesday.

The second email was from a former reader. He emailed to say he’d unsubscribed from the blog, because I publish too often.

Here’s what this has to do with growing your business.

Frequency

Clearly, I’ll never be able to keep everyone happy with the frequency of my posts. For some it will be too little and for others, it will be too much. If I keep Sophie happy, I lose Rick. If I keep Rick happy, I lose Sophie.

So, here’s what I do.

Rather than try and get the frequency right for everyone, I use a different kind of frequency. A frequency that works. Every. Single. Time!

It’s the kind of frequency, which YOU can use to attract more clients or customers and build your business.

The other type of frequency

There’s another kind of frequency. The kind radios use. If you tune your radio into the same frequency as a radio station, you receive their signal. You’re (literally) on the same wavelength as them.

When you’re on the same wavelength as your marketplace, you’re in harmony with them. And they’re in harmony with you. Sophie and I are on the same wavelength. If you’re a long time reader, you and I are on the same wavelength too.

In short: I write for you and Sophie.

Now, that won’t be the right frequency for everyone. But I don’t write for everyone. And there’s a very good reason why. It turns out you can’t keep everyone happy. And the harder you try, the weaker your signal becomes. Before you know it, no one’s on your wavelength.

Though I used the example of blogging for this post, the exact same strategy works for every kind of marketing.

Supercharge your marketing

If your marketing isn’t resonating with your marketplace, it’s entirely possible your signal is too weak. This happens when you try to be relevant to as many people as possible.

By being vaguely relevant to as many people as possible, you become directly relevant to no one. And it’s only directly relevant marketing messages, which motivate people to take action.

So pick a frequency. Shun the masses. Embrace the community you wish to serve. Focus on them, their needs and their wants. Be generous. And be generous as often as you can.

Here are 5 practical things you can get started on today, which your future self will thank you for. They’re in no particular order.

Let’s get started!

1: Look for the hidden gold dust that’s under your nose. What was the last marketing email you received, which you opened? What was the last marketing message you read, which motivated you to make a purchase or make an enquiry? By decoding what prompted you to take action, you can get ideas, to make your own marketing more effective. There’s gold dust all around you, if you choose to look for it.

2: Look for trust-building opportunities. Trust is the foundation of every great relationship. We earn trust from what we do, rather than what we say. So show, don’t tell. Tip: This strategy works great.

3: Look for better problems to solve. By solving better problems, you increase your commercial value. Increasing your commercial value is the starting point, to attracting the best clients and earning the best fees. The good news is that most of your competitors will deliberately avoid the tricky stuff. They’ll avoid solving the problems that require additional effort. This presents you with a wonderful opportunity. An opportunity to set yourself apart from your competitors and position yourself as a highly valued provider.

4: Look for the main barrier to your success. Then invest the time and effort required to remove it. Once you’ve removed it, what used to be your second biggest barrier to success will be the new number one. So, invest the time and effort required to remove it. Repeat.

5: Look for ways to significantly improve your service. I did this recently, when I decided to make it possible for clients to pay me in instalments. The results were immediate and spectacular. What simple improvement could you make, which your clients and future clients would really value?

I hope you find at least one thing here, which you can get started on today. If you do, your future self will thank you.

Many hard working business owners get very few referrals from their clients or customers. Conversely, other business owners have clients who are a regular source of high quality referrals.

Here’s one reason why this happens. By understanding it, you can significantly increase the number of client referrals you receive.

Pretty-much every business owner works hard for their clients. They make sure their clients get the quality of service they expect. And they consistently strive to ensure their clients get value for money. Of course, our clients expect us to work hard for them. They expect a great quality service. They expect value for money.

In other words, if that’s where we set the bar on the service we provide, we’re merely meeting expectations.

Simply meeting expectations isn’t enough, if we want our clients to tell their friends about us.

Exceeding expectations

The service providers who attract the most referrals have a different approach. They deliberately look for opportunities to exceed expectations. To go the extra mile.

Here’s a very simple example.

The typical service provider tells their client that a project will be completed by the middle of the week. A vague deadline isn’t that useful to a client, but it gives the provider some wriggle room if they’re running late.

A provider who exceeds expectations tells the client the project will be ready by 4pm Wednesday. They know that clients love the clarity of deadlines. They also know that by setting and achieving deadlines, their clients learn to rely on them. To trust them. To value them.

As you can see from the above example, it doesn’t take much more effort to exceed expectations than it does to meet expectations. However, the results are disproportionately huge. So, why not look for opportunities today, to exceed the expectations of at least one of your clients or customers? They’ll appreciate the difference. And so will you, my friend.

Thanks to social networks, you can listen to your marketplace and find out exactly what they want. This means you can develop a product or service, knowing in advance that the demand will be high. No more guessing. Wow!

You’re living in the golden age of business. This is the era, which past generations dreamed of. For example, YouTube gives you a free, global TV channel. WordPress gives you a free, global publishing platform and Gmail gives you free, global message distribution.

When you improve your strategy, you improve your results. And you can choose to improve your strategy any time you want to.

Finally, you can get moving on anything listed above, right now, and start enjoying the results.

Why your brand needs a story

“There isn’t any significant difference between the various brands of whiskey, or cigarettes or beer. They are all about the same”. “[…] The manufacturer who dedicates his advertising to building the most sharply defined personality for his brand will get the largest share of the market at the highest profit”.

That message isn’t new. It was written decades ago, as you can tell from the examples he uses. Yet it’s even more valid today.

Think about it: Apple’s iPhone is the best selling mobile phone in the world, despite being one of the most expensive. It doesn’t have the best display, the best camera, the best signal reception or the best battery life. But it does have the best story.

Emotions drive decisions

Your prospective clients or customers are motivated by emotions, far more than logic. The way they feel about your brand, is what will drive their decision to hire you, buy from you and recommend you. And it’s your story, which determines how they feel about you.